Joining me for the last ever episode of "The MiND Podcast" (how emotional) is the fantastic Patrick McIlwee, the Founder and Coach at New Ways NI. We delve a little deeper into conversations about how social media, the internet and technology can impact the minds of young people if exposed to large amounts. Patrick also discusses a few of the projects he is currently working, some of his own experiences with mental health and his business 'New Ways NI'.

As a extra nugget for all the listeners Patrick also takes us through some mindfulness and meditation at the end of the podcast which I hope you can all take the time to try and enjoy.

This entire experience has been one I will never forget and I am truly grateful to all my amazing guests throughout the two seasons of podcasts. I have not only found them insightful and helpful in my own journey, but they have opened so many doors to meet some truly remarkable people.

This is the end of the road for MiND and I can wait for my next chapter to begin. Thank you for listening.

Much love.

Darran x

MiND "Mental Health In A New Direction"

Both Gary and I originally released this episode as part of the Changemakers NI project and recently spoke about the need to bring it to a larger audience in the hope that it might help inspire others to speak up. We have therefore, re-released the episode as part of a joint venture with The Think Curiously Podcast, hosted by Gary. In this episode, Gary and I speak about our own experiences with grief, our actions, thoughts, feelings and emotions. This full episode is based upon our own lived through experiences and is in no way designed to tell you how you should grieve. 

Joining me for this episode is the fantastic Gareth Fox, Performance & Mindset Coach, Therapist, Internationally published author, and Mental Health Journalist. Both me and Gareth cover a range of topics surrounding our mental health, some of the ways we can improve our own mental health, and also delve a little deeper into some of Gareth's work and a new program he has just launched call Backbone. I have split this episode into a two-part episode and definitely feel you will take just as much value away from both. Thanks for tuning in and keep an eye out for our next episode.

Joining me for this episode is the fantastic Gareth Fox, Performance & Mindset Coach, Therapist, Internationally published author, and Mental Health Journalist. Both me and Gareth cover a range of topics surrounding our mental health, some of the ways we can improve our own mental health, and also delve a little deeper into some of Gareth's work and a new program he has just launched call Backbone. I have split this episode into a two-part episode and definitely feel you will take just as much value away from both. Thanks for tuning in and keep an eye out for our next episode.

Joining me for episode #2 is Cahir Clancy from Sonas Mental Wellness. Both Cahir and I discuss some of our own experiences on our journeys to date including our experiences with anxiety and how we have dealt with that in later life. Cahir discusses his journey through school and university, the birth of his little girl, and also some of the decisions he has made in life to get to where he is today. For me, this was probably my highlight podcast of the series so far and probably one of my favorites to date, in the fact both myself and Cahir had so many connections on our personal journeys. Cahir also shares his knowledge in why the brain operates in particular ways. The key takeaway for me was how we should all equip ourselves with our hypothetical 'Mental Heath Toolbox', so we can identify and overcome particular adversities in our lives by doing so.     

Welcome back to series two - episode one of The MiND Podcast. We invited Luke and Adam to join us on the show who have embarked on a 66-day challenge to raise money and awareness for a local Mental Health Charity. The challenge includes 5 gents from The North Coast: Lewis Gardner, Adam Stewart, Luke McIlreavy, Andrew McLean & Ross Canning, who are running 1,000k and staying sober 66 days. They are 31 days into the challenge, with 35 days remaining - Monday 8th March being the finishing date. They have collectively run a total of over 400km/248.5 miles and raised over £1,500+ for The Olive Branch (Mental Health Charity). Only 630km/391miles to go on their fundraising endeavors and no doubt they will absolutely smash their target. Wishing the lads all the best and thanks for joining me on the podcast.  

That concludes series #1 of the MiND Podcast, however, we invited some guests and listeners onto the series recap to share their opinions on the first series, some of their key take-away points, and an insight into their favorite episodes. They also get to ask Darran some questions on why he started the podcast, what was his inspiration behind it and what his plans are for series #2. He also discusses his favorite episode throughout recording series #1. Thanks to everyone who has tuned into the podcast and supported us on the MiND journey. We can't wait to release full details for series #2 very soon! "Mental Health In A New Direction".

On our series finale, we have Dr. Davey Hoops & Rob Sanders from The Legacy Partnership who both share their stories about their own personal battles with mental health and how their paths crossed and The Legacy Partnership was formed. We also discuss a range of topics including morning and evening routine, why Davey & Rob do what they do, their 'WHY', and their future plans and aspirations with their business. I have really enjoyed my journey so far with 'The MiND Podcast', I hope you have all taken something useful away from it and good news, we have already got to work on our second series. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my fantastic guests for sharing their stories and to all my listeners who tune in every week. 

I talk to Gary Wallace in this podcast, who is the founder and director of CORE NI, their main aim is to deliver positive experiences of physical activity and wellbeing with everyone they work with. Gary is also the Strength and Conditioning coach with Northern Ireland's senior men's football team. We cover a range of topics including the importance of a morning and evening routine which Gary has adapted to his own day to day life, we also cover the benefits of physical fitness for mental wellbeing as well as some of Gary's own struggles with his own depression and how he became more emotionally aware throughout his journey.  Thanks to Gary for taking the time to join me on The MiND Podcast - "Mental Health In A New Direction".

Conor Kelly is an inspirational Mental Health Blogger from Manchester, UK. He runs a mental health blog called the ComebaCK. The Comeback beats the setback in Conor's words. All themed on returning from adversity. He has an extensive collection of blogs articles/interviews on mental health, music, sport, lifestyle and much more!

Really enjoyed chatting with Conor who is an English teacher in Vietnam and has used his travel and experiences to identify some of the issues affecting him personally. Thanks for tuning into the MiND Podcast - "Mental Health In A New Direction".